Breaking Down Walls
by Stellar Rose
Summary: As Charlotte returns to New York from college, she reconnects with her childhood friends while discovering more about herself than she previously knew. Takes place after the 2007 TMNT movie. Written in 2008, being published now.
1. Chapter 1

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" My friends screamed as I opened the door. I fell backwards, accidentally losing my grip on the five pizzas I had brought back. One went flying over the railing, never to be eaten. My friend, Michelangelo, rushed over to help pick up the fallen pizzas. He grinned at me.

I met the turtles when we were really young. We can't quite remember how we met, but my version is that I stumbled upon them after I fell down a manhole. Sometimes everyone agrees my version is the most accurate, since I've got more proof. I grew up with the turtles.

Leo's the one who taught me how to slow dance when I complained about not knowing how.

Raph's the one who taught me not to drink, smoke, or be too sexy.

Donnie's the one who taught me how electronic things function.

And Mikey's the one who encouraged me to pursue a college degree for electronic gaming.

"I'm sorry." I apologized to Mikey, as Leo helped me up.

"Don't worry about it. I've got more in the kitchen." He said, I laughed.

"Should've known."

"The college girl is back!" Raph exclaimed as I hugged him.

"You're just jealous." I laughed as I moved to Donatello.

"You don't know how lonely it's been without you to come over." Don said.

"And wow, it's your 21st birthday and you still look like you're 16." Leo complimented. I grinned, then looked at Mikey.

"You're awfully quiet." I pointed out.

"I'm waiting for you guys to stop talking so I can eat my pizza!" He exclaimed. I laughed.

"I'm all for that!" I said, then ran to the kitchen.

After eating, we were all sitting around in my living room, exchanging stories. The only thing missing was Mikey. I wondered where he was.

"So who's the lucky guy?" Raphael asked.

"Excuse me?" I asked.

"You have to have a boyfriend."

"I don't."

"So you're trying to tell me that you look that hot, yet you don't have a guy?"

"I never wanted a boyfriend, so therefore, I've never had one." I finished the conversation by tugging on the back of Raph's bandana. Just then Cowabunga Carl came bounding down the stairs.

"Oh my god!" I groaned, tilting my head and closing my eyes.

"Cowabunga Carl here for Charlotte's 21st birthday!" He announced, then took off his Cowabunga head and sat down.

(BTW-Raph & I are on a couch, Leo & Mikey are on the couch opposite me and poor Donnie's in an armchair by himself).

"Uh Char, we noticed the For Rent sign outside your apartment." Leo said.

"Yeah I'm moving out." I said.

"But where will you live?" Don asked, leaning forward.

"Well I was kinda hoping I could live with you." I asked warily.

"Yeah! It'll be like old times when we used to have sleepovers!" Mikey exclaimed.

"Yeah Mikey, just like old times." I echoed. Raph scoffed.

"Yeah, when you slept in Mikey's room." He added.

"What did you two do when you slept there?" Leo asked.

"Do we even want to know?" Don asked. Mikey was turning redder with every word.

"We just talked!" I defended.

"Uh-huh" Raph.

"Yeah." Leo.

"I'm sure." Don.

"We did! If I slept with Raph, he'd keep me up all night with his snoring. If I slept with Don he'd keep me up all night with his calculation. Leo'd make me go to sleep early. Mikey was the only one I could stay up all night just talking to." I shrugged. The others shrunk back into their seats, knowing they're defeated. I smiled at Mikey, who exhaled and grinned graciously.

I dusted my hands off. We'd just finished moving my stuff into my new room.

"Thanks guys." I thanked them as they all filed out of my room. I followed them. Mikey went straight for his video game. I followed him. Time to teach him a thing or two.

"Hey Mikes, turn left down that road there." I instructed him as he drove around in a cute little Volkswagen Bug.

"What?" He asked, confused.

"Just do it." And he did. Suddenly, a different screen flashed on. It showed a picture of a blue TR-6 Triumph (1972).

"You unlocked the best car in the game! Charlotte, how'd you—"

I cut him off by holding up my hand. "Degree in electronic gaming, remember?" I asked him. He nodded. I sat down next to him and helped him with his other games.

~Dinner~

We all persuaded Don not to make dinner, so Leo did. It went well, that is, until Raph opened his mouth.

"Hey Charlotte, if you were to hook up with one of us, any one of us (Author's Note: like there were so many), who do you think it'd be?" Raph asked curiously. I raised my eyebrows as I took a sip of my water.

"I'd say Mikey." Don answered for me. Then my water went down the wrong way. I started coughing. Raph smiled and leaned back, crossing his arms. I didn't dare look at Michelangelo. I took a sip of my water and turned on Don.

"Why do you say that?" I asked nonchalantly. Don seemed surprised by my reaction, so Leo answered for him.

"You both love pizza and video games. You're always together, and—"

"And I'm sure you'd both love to snog each other." Raph interjected. I opened my mouth to make a snide comment about Mona Lisa, but then a green blur jumped from the table and tackled Raph. I jumped up and saw a very pissed Michelangelo beating the shit out of Raphael. Don and Leo were too stunned to do anything. So I ran over and pinned Michelangelo to the wall by pushing his shoulders.

"What are you doing?!" I shouted at him. His eyes were a bit cloudy, but a breathtaking shade of blue. He brusquely slapped me off. I landed on the hard floor and felt my mouth. Blood. I grabbed the edge of the table and pulled myself into a sitting position. By now, Don and Leo had broken up the fight. Leo was holding back Mikey and Don was holding back Raph. Leo was yelling at Mikey.

"Do you realize the damage you've done? You've disrupted our dinner, hurt Raphael AND Charlotte!"

Of course, all eyes turned to me. I had one hand clasped over my mouth as I ran to the bathroom. I spit several times into the sink and rinsed my mouth out with water. Then I emerged from the bathroom. I found very worried looking turtles sitting all around the table.

"I'm alright you guys. Just a little blood. Nothing bad." I reassured them, leaning on the wall.

"I just wanted to say I was sorry." Mikey said, looking down. I smiled.

"It's ok, Mikes. Raph?" I asked, crossing my arms. Raphael sulked in his chair.

"I'm sorry." He growled.

"There, now we're all good." I said cheerfully. Leo glanced at the clock, then stood up.

"It's 10:30. We should get some sleep." He ordered. We all nodded and went to our rooms.

I showered, then changed into a black camisole and soft black baggy pants. I was brushing my hair when I heard the unmistakable sound of thunder. I winced slightly, then noticed a frazzled-looking Michelangelo. He looked frightened to death, and he was clutching his bedding.

"Yes Mikey?" I asked, a bit unnerved.

"Can I sleep with you?" He asked hurriedly.

"Did you lose your teddy bear again?" I sighed. Maroon color decorated his cheeks.

"No it's just—" He was interrupted by another rumble of thunder. He jumped and cowered under his bedding.

"Aww" I said, feeling sorry for him. "Here. You can set up your bed next to mine." I instructed. He nodded and hurriedly set it up. I snuggled under my covers, rolled onto my side and watched him. When he finally got settled, he grinned at me. I turned out the lights.

"Thanks Char." He said.

"No problem." I replied, rolling onto my back.

"Hey Charlotte," Mikey started. I sat upright. He never used my full name, so it had to be serious.

"What?"

"Do you want to tell the guys?"

"Tell them what?"

"About the last time we did this."

"Slept together in the same room?"

"Yeah"

"NO." I shouted. I didn't care how much teasing I'd receive if the others ran in and saw this layout. They were not going to know. Mikey knew my stubbornness, so he chose to back off.

"You do know that there was no emotion in that night, right?" I asked him, lying down again.

"Is there emotion now?" He asked.

"Mikey…"

"I wanna know!"

"I don't like where this is going. Goodnight." I replied, rolling over and shutting my eyes tight.

Michelangelo POV

Damn, Charlotte was a hard puzzle to crack. Apparently she got over her fear of storms while she was in Romania. Where the hell is that country anyway? Of course I faked my fear, just so I could sleep in the same room as her. Usually, one storm and she'd pour out all her secrets to me. Then she felt bad, and I'd cheer her up with one of my lame jokes. She was the only one who found them funny. My brothers just don't understand how deep Charlotte is, how there are all these points of views down in her, but if she releases them, then she'd be hated/mocked by the entire world. Plus, she was the only one who understood me. She was the one that always had a pizza and a hug for me when I screwed up. Which during our teen years, happened a few more times than normal. So sue me for liking Charlotte's smell and pizza.

There's no denying it anymore, I loved Charlotte Osmond. And it scared me.


	2. Chapter 2

I was up early, before Leo even. At least I think, but I was just sitting in my room, reading. Silent morning is great for concentrating. Mikey's steady, even breathing sometimes makes me fall asleep. Then when I wake up, Mikey's grinning face scares me out of my skin. I turned the pages softly, so I wouldn't wake him.

"Again?" I heard Leo say. I looked up, he was staring at the sleeping Michelangelo.

"The storm scared him."

"Are you still afraid of them?"

"Nah, Romania has them a lot."

"Hm. Mikey was never scared of them before." Leo teased.

"Oh don't you start!" I exclaimed. He just laughed and left for his morning exercise. I resumed my reading.

Later, my stomach started growling, so I rose to get food. I stepped carefully around Mikey, but something made me trip. I fell on top of him. His eyes flew open just as I rolled over him.

"What happened?" He asked, somewhat groggily.

"I was hungry, so I got up. I tripped and fell on you." I said, pushing myself up. I leaned back on my heels.

"Are you sure you tripped?" He asked with a cocky grin. I pushed his shoulder.

"Since when did you become a pervert? And since when did you get such nice muscles?" I asked, pinching his biceps.

"Since you left." He answered, poking my stomach. My weak spot. I doubled over and started laughing. I started flapping my hand, trying to slap his hand away.

"Do you want food or not?" I asked. His eyes widened, and he ran to the kitchen. I stood up and walked to join. In the kitchen we noticed Raph was up

"Good morning Raphael." I greeted him cheerfully. He grumbled something I couldn't make out. Then he saw Mikey with me and his eyebrows rose.

"The storm scared him." I told him before he said anything.

"No it didn't!" Mikey defended. Then my eyebrows rose.

"Then why did you sleep with her?" Raph asked, leaning back on the counter. Mikey's head emerged from the fridge, instantly it reddened. Raph smiled and grabbed his coffee and left to watch TV. I kept smirking at him while he devoured his food.

"Hey guys." Donatello yawned, sitting down at the table to look at some papers he had left there. I poured him some orange juice. He took it and slipped it wordlessly. Mornings were usually slow here, but after Raph had his coffee, Don had his calculations, Mikey had his food, and Leo has his exercise, this family is ready to fight. Me? I'm both a morning person and a night. I love the hustle of the morning and the stillness of the night. Finally, Leo returned.

"Hey look!" Raph exclaimed, and leaned forward to the TV. He was watching the news; they were talking about some big CEO named Max Winters and how he mysteriously disappeared. All the turtles were grinning.

"OK you guys, spill." I said, relaxing into the couch. One by one they told me everything.

"Sounds like you guys had fun while I was out at college. Why didn't you include any of that in your letters?" I asked, looking at Don. He was the one who'd look over the letters to make sure they were "punctual".

"We didn't want to distract you or worry you." Leo shrugged. I nodded and leaned my head back. Everyone was quiet for awhile, then Mikey went,

"OK, I'm bored."

Raph looked at me and opened his mouth to say something, but I slapped his shoulder instead. A second later, his arms were on either side of me. My eyes were wide and I wondered what he was going to do. Unfortunately I found out the hard way. The next second, Raphael's lips were on mine. It was very like him. Strong and in control, passionate yet there was hidden softness. Never mind how good a kisser he was, I pushed him off. Everyone was still standing there shocked. I didn't look at Michelangelo. Instead, I did what my parents taught me to do long ago. I kicked my leg up and hit the male weak spot. He doubled over, and I ran to my room.

I looked up as my door opened. Mikey, who else? I wordlessly looked away. He wordlessly grabbed a chair and sat down and stared at me.

"You don't like him, do you?" He asked.

"Mikes, I spent my whole life without a single crush or a boyfriend. What would make now any different?" I retorted. It seemed to shut him up.

I didn't know he was next to me until he whispered in my ear. Guess it's a ninja thing.

"You've spent your life shielding yourself from crushes and love. Maybe it's time you bring those walls down."

Then when I swiveled my head to see him, he was gone. Another ninja thing. I curled myself up and returned to sleep. But did it come? Of course not.

I woke up hours later. When I rolled over to look at the time it was 5:30. The others should be eating dinner by now. Sure enough, they were. There was food at my seat, but I wasn't hungry. That scared me. I walked in and grabbed my plate. All eyes were on me. I placed it in the fridge for later.

"Not hungry?" Don asked me, surprised. I nodded and sat on the couch. For some odd reason lately, I've been so tired! Suddenly I felt someone's eyes on me. I looked over at the table. Mikey was staring at me, but quickly stared at his plate when he saw me looking at him. I groaned inwardly.

"You see Michelangelo," I started. All of the turtles heads snapped up. "THIS is why I never wanted a boyfriend. The awkwardness, the stares, and the DRAMA. I hate it all." I said. Mikey's face was beet red, and all the others were shocked. It seemed Raph was angry. I stood up and brushed myself off.

"Like I said, if I've spent my whole life without a boyfriend or crush, what would make now any different?" I repeated. Michelangelo stood up fast; he was pissed. I flinched.

"And yet you're not a virgin." He snapped. All the turtles jaws gaped as they stared at me. My eyes widened and my heart rate sped up considerably. Adrenaline pumped through my body and I started shaking.

"You…" I stammered shakily. Mikey pursed his lips. "You said you'd never tell!" I exclaimed, clenching my fists. Mikey shrugged.

"You promised and you said you were on your honor!" I continued.

"It's not like we had emotion then!" He exclaimed.

"Wait, so you two did it? You fucked each other?" Raph asked in disbelief. I sighed and hung my head. My face burned and surprisingly, I felt tears. I lifted my head. Mikey's eyes softened a little when he saw my tears.

"Charlotte…" He whispered. I shook my head and walked to my room. I slammed my door and threw myself onto my bed. I didn't wonder or stop myself. This time I let myself cry. Maybe Michelangelo was right. It was time to bring my walls down.


End file.
